The power of the fourth estate, or the mass media, notably the press, has been restricted in many African countries, and its role as a catalyst of change in civil society curtailed. The ensuing information gap provided fertile ground for alternative forms of communication to take centre stage. This phenomenon is referred to as the 'fifth estate'. A parallel market of information has been facilitated by new technologies that circumvent government censorship. On 1 August 2013, heavy rains in the Sudan triggered flash floods that affected more than 530.000 citizens. The government failed to aid those affected and created a media blackout. More than 12.000 Sudanese volunteers created a horizontal network of citizens participating in a community-led initiative. The Nafeer campaign united the fragmented discourse, demonstrating that using ICTs to mobilize citizens is not contingent on the number of people with access, but on how access is channeled. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. [Journal abstract]